Glossary
Landscaper Terms & Vocabulary
15 essential landscaper terms with plain-English definitions: the vocabulary you’ll hear in training and on day one.
Key landscaper vocabulary
These 15 terms come up constantly in landscaper training, on the job and in interviews. Knowing them helps you follow instructions, document accurately and sound prepared.
- Aeration
- Removing soil plugs to loosen lawns.
- Backflow preventer
- A device protecting water supplies.
- Bed
- A planting area.
- Crown
- Where a plant’s stem meets roots.
- Dethatching
- Removing dead grass buildup.
- Edging
- Cutting a clean line along lawns.
- Grade
- The slope of the ground.
- Hardscape
- Non-plant features like walls and paths.
- Irrigation zone
- An area watered by one valve.
- Mulch
- Material spread over soil to hold moisture.
- Overseeding
- Spreading seed over existing grass.
- Pre-emergent
- Herbicide that stops weeds before sprouting.
- Root ball
- The roots and soil of a plant.
- Sod
- Pre-grown grass.
- Softscape
- Plants and living features.
Practice these terms
Test yourself with the free Landscaper practice test: it includes vocabulary questions built from this list. For a complete course, see Landscaper training.
Browse terms from every career in our career glossary.